Pages

New CGOA Blogger - Caissa McClinton @artlikebread

Tuesday, January 12, 2016

Hello, CGOA! I am honored to join the team of Crochet Guild of America bloggers!

Hi!

I have been a member since 2011 and I am happy to serve my professional organization in this way. I learned about the CGOA through the Yarn Thing Podcast with Marly Bird. In fact, I owe my entire yarn crafting life to podcasts! The only reason I ever picked up a crochet hook was because I was inspired by an episode of Craftypod with Diane Gilleland.

Before crochet, I was mainly a paper crafter, garment sewer, and jewelry maker. I couldn't figure out why someone would want so much yarn! My, how things change! After realizing I would actually be making fabric by crocheting, I was in! I had already sent in my request to join Ravelry (yes, it was in the invitation days) and as soon as I was approved, I ran out to the library and got a couple of crochet books. I asked my mom for a crochet hook (a blue, plastic 3.75mm hook with a "Bates-style" head) and picked out some blue eyelash yarn from Michael's. I was able to chain but quickly realized that it was really hard to see the stitches. I still made a chain bracelet, though!

So I went over to Jo-Ann's and (yikes!) spent over five dollars on a ball of maroon acrylic yarn, then went back to the book. I then discovered that while I could make the chain, I couldn't advance any further because the directions said insert hook into stitch I didn't know where in the stitch they meant! By my estimation, there were three possible places to do that and I just wasn't sure what to do. I don't remember how it came up, but I learned that a lady at my work named Evelyn could show me how to crochet. She patiently showed me the double crochet stitch and from there things started to make sense.

I am glad to have found the CGOA and I am looking forward to becoming more involved as a blogger. I have started (and have yet to finish) the Master's Program. Maybe y'all can cheer me on in my progress! I am the founding President of the first Mexican Chapter of the Crochet Guild of America, but I currently live in the Miami/Fort Lauderdale Metro. If you need help starting a chapter, please let me know!

I'm very interactive, so let's keep the conversation going. How did you discover crochet? What was your first crochet project?

CGOA welcomes your comments! To help us avoid comment-spam, all comments are moderated. Damaging, hateful, profane, advertising, or solicitation comments will not be approved. If your comment is not approved, please feel free to reword it and post it again. For guild-related questions, please send an email to: cgoanow @ crochet.org (to help us avoid spam, cut and paste address into your email program and remove spaces from "@").

CGOA Member Pics from Chain Link

Important Blog Information

About This Blog

CGOA Now! is the place to find book reviews, the latest news and information about CGOA, and general items of interest from the crochet community. The content of the blog is overseen by the Board of Directors and Chain Link editor Kim Guzman.